Children's Home run by AMMA Childcare Services in Solihull

Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 1 Registered provider: AMMA Childcare Services Ltd

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Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is privately owned and is registered to provide care for up to three children who experience social and emotional difficulties. At the time of this inspection, three children were living in the home. Two children were spoken with during the inspection.

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Information about this children’s home

The suitably qualified manager registered with Ofsted in June 2024.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Date of last inspection: 17 October 2023

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

17/10/2023 Full Good 20/09/2022 Full Good Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 3

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are settled and enjoy living at the home. They share warm and positive relationships with the staff, which contributes to them feeling secure. One child said, ‘I love it here. I never want to leave.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children make good progress at this home. Social workers agree that children are making progress. One social worker said, ‘He is growing in confidence through the work that staff are doing. Staff are resilient. They do not give up and keep chipping away, leading to progress.’

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The atmosphere in the home is warm and friendly. Children are proud of their home. They have personalised their bedrooms, and photos of the children are displayed in communal areas, which promotes a sense of belonging.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s hobbies and interests are well supported. Children share a love of football, and staff support them to attend football matches. Supporting and sharing the children’s interests builds relationships and increases the children’s self-esteem and sense of self-worth.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children have opportunities to experience new things. One child described their recent holiday as ‘great’ because it was the first time they had been on an aeroplane.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are developing their independent living skills. One child catches the bus to college, which is helping them to reach important milestones as they prepare for adulthood. This gives the child belief in their abilities, and their confidence is growing.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Positive behaviour is encouraged through rewards and praise. Incentive charts support children to track their progress and achieve their goals, such as showering and brushing their teeth. This encourages good daily routines, which has a positive impact on children’s well-being.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children feel safe. There have been no staff changes at the home for over 12 months. There is a strong sense of togetherness, and the settled team ensures that children receive care from staff they know and trust.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities. They know about the children’s vulnerabilities and the risks that they face. Risks are assessed, and guidance is in place for staff to follow to keep children safe.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Daily comprehensive handover meetings take place. The meetings ensure that staff have the up-to-date information they need to provide safe care. Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 4 Staff complete direct work and have important discussions with children to help increase their awareness of personal safety, such as online risks. This supports children to make safe life choices.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children know how to make a complaint. When a child made a complaint about a staff member’s conduct, it was investigated and taken seriously. This helps children to feel safe and listened to.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Consequences for negative behaviour are rarely used. However, when used, they are not always restorative. This is a missed opportunity to support children to understand the effects of their behaviour. In addition, some of the language used in the records is not supportive of children in line with the home’s therapeutic approach. Leaders are taking action to address this.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The appointment of the new manager is a strength of the home. She knows the children well because she was previously the deputy manager. Children speak fondly about her. One child described the manager as ‘really good’. A social worker said the manager is ‘fantastic and very responsive’.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager feels supported and is enjoying her new role. She is proud of the children and speaks about them with warmth and enthusiasm. When needed, she challenges partner agencies effectively when decisions made are not in children’s best interests. This ensures that children’s voices are heard, and it shows the manager’s dedication to wanting the best outcomes for the children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Monitoring systems are much improved and ensure that children receive safe, good- quality care. The systems help the manager and leaders to identify and evaluate the home’s strengths and areas for development to benefit children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff feel supported, and they hold the manager’s leadership in high regard. This positive approach means that morale is high, and staff are committed to wanting the best outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff development and training are prioritised. Staff complete a varied training programme and receive monthly support and guidance from the clinical director. This guidance provides opportunities for staff to continually gain knowledge to support children in line with the home’s therapeutic approach.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The quality and frequency of staff supervision have improved since the last inspection. Regular reflective supervision supports staff practice. Staff attend monthly team meetings to talk about the children and share ideas.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The requirements and recommendations raised at the last inspection are met. This shows that lessons have been learned. Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 5

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that staff are familiar with the home’s policies on record-keeping and understand the importance of careful, objective and clear recording. Staff should record information on individual children in a non-stigmatising way that distinguishes between fact, opinion and third-party information. Information about the child must always be recorded in a way that will be helpful to the child. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 62, paragraph 14.4)

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Recommendations

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences that are used to address poor behaviour should be restorative in nature to help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children and the staff caring for them. In some cases, it will be important for children to make reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour, and the staff in the home should be skilled to support the child to understand this and carry it out. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 6

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: AMMA Childcare Services Ltd

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: S K N Business Centre, 1 Guildford Street, Birmingham B19 2HN

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Children’s home details

Responsible individual: Kamilah Mullings

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Inspectors

Amy Richards, Social Care Inspector Joanne Vyas, Regulatory Inspection Manager Inspection report for children's home: 2668686 7 achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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